• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

prayer for judgement

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

mvanleir

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? New Jersey
Nine years ago, in North Carolina, my son who was 16 at the time was arrested for shoplifting. He received a prayer for judgement, was assigned to community service and told if he completed that service, he would have no record. He is 26 now and until recently this misdemeanor never came up. However he applied for a job in a company that does national criminal record searches and this came up. He had answered on application that he had not been convicted of any crimes. He received a letter from the employer explaining that they have received this criminal record upon doing the search and NOW the fact that he lied is a matter of record when other employers do a background check. What can be done? It doesn't make sense that this one mistake could follow him. I am guessing something fell through the crack in the NC court?:confused:
 


nate11000

Junior Member
Ouch...

Hi - I had a friend with the same record in NC. Shoplifting when 16, community service, record expunged. I'm no lawyer, but my understanding of this situation is that his record on this offense is supposed to be completely closed. He works for a company that did background checks, and he didn't have a problem. I believe you were supposed to call and check to make sure the recrod was in fact wiped after he completed his community service. This should be your first step, in fact. Call the courthose and figure out what the problem is, and get his record cleaned up!

Your next step should be to call the company. Your son was NOT convicted of a crime, and he did NOT lie on his application. He was accused, but the case was DROPPED--this is very different from pleading guilty. Maybe he can save his application to this particular company, since it was a mistake that it showed up in the first place.

More importantly, make it clear to the company that they'd better not release this information. If his record was expunged of the arrest, and they're doling out information that he has been 'convicted' of a crime, they're liable for what they say. Threaten to sue them (libel, slander, defamation, or something like that--ask a real lawyer). However, most companies don't give out this type of information anyway, since they already know they could be opening themselves up for a lawsuit. Also, demand to know what company they used for their information. If his record truly is cleared in the court records and some company is spreading this information, sue the *******s!

Again, talk to a real lawyer before you do anything drastic, but do everything you can to defend your son. If it happened at one company, he'll be trapped in a world of limitations until his name gets cleared.

Good luck!
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top